David Waters: Bike messengers from God

December 11, 2013 — As cold temperatures loom, Carolyn Bates receives donated toiletries and warm clothes from members of the Urban Bicycle Food Ministry Wednesday evening at the corner of Poplar and Cleveland. Every week a dozen or so area bikers, ride the streets of midtown and downtown offering food, water, and essentials to area homeless and the needy. (Mark Weber/The Commercial Appeal)

December 11, 2013 — Urban Bicycle Food Ministry members Tommy Clark (left) and Frank Fournier (right) load up as they prepare to hand out warm clothes to area homeless Wednesday evening. Every week a dozen or so area bikers, ride the streets of midtown and downtown offering food, water, and essentials to area homeless and the needy. (Mark Weber/The Commercial Appeal)

Some of the faithful were wearing cross-trainers, others plain old tennis shoes as they gathered in a circle to begin their regular Wednesday evening service.

Two of them stretched red Santa caps over their helmets, others pushed their helmets down over winter beanies.

The minister pulled a jacket over the crosses tattooed on his right arm and offered a short prayer: "Dear God in Heaven. We are all called to be your disciples, your servants. We pray for your guidance and safety."

Then, at about 8:15 p.m., the 16 congregants got on their bikes and rode out into the nippy, 35-degree night, guided by the teachings of Jesus and the markings of bike lanes.

That's when the service began.

For the next two hours, 16 members of the Urban Bicycle Food Ministry, lights flashing, dashed through Midtown and Downtown delivering food, water, clothing and a bit of fellowship to dozens of homeless men and women.

"Have you had dinner tonight?" they asked men or women they found sitting in Church Park or Handy Park, or huddled in corners outside the Cossitt branch library or the Memphis Cook Convention Center.

"Are you staying warm enough?" they asked men and women sleeping under overpasses along Danny Thomas, congregating near the VA on Madison or Manna House on Jefferson.

"It's more respectful than saying, ‘Do you want some food?' or ‘Need some clothes?'," said Rev. Tommy Clark, 36, a Middle Tennessean who moved here a few years ago to attend Memphis Theological Seminary. He graduated in May. "We're trying to be good neighbors."

The good news gear-shifters saw regulars like Lonnie near the park, Joseph by the library, Laurie under the bridge. They also saw people they'd never seen before. They got and gave high fives and hugs. They stopped and chatted. They prayed with and were prayed for.

"We've tried using vehicles, but bikes are less invasive and more personal." said Frank Rouse, an aircraft mechanic for FedEx who has been riding with the ministry since it began more than a year ago. "And if we see someone on a park bench, we can just hop the curb and ride right up."

Clark launched the bike ministry on his own after he took a class led by Dr. Barry Anderson in the summer of 2012. The class was on revitalizing the local church. "Ministry in our generation must become missional or it will not survive," Anderson explained.

Clark began his mission by buying two boxes of tortillas. He made 15 burritos, got on his bike and delivered them on his own one Wednesday evening. The next Wednesday, four friends joined him and they passed out 30 burritos.

Nearly all of the food and supplies are donated by local bikers, runners and triathletes who have turned his duplex into a mini-warehouse. "My porch makes me look I've got a serious online shopping problem," he said.

Last weekend,'s donations included about 3,000 unused goody bags filled with fruit, cereal bars and Gatorade from the canceled St. Jude Marathon. The beatific bikers made special deliveries through Sunday.

"They simply stepped up and started doing this on their own dime and discovered that there are a lot of like-minded people willing to ride, cook, donate and do backroom legal work to keep it going," said Vince Perryman, a local attorney who is helping Clark turn UBFM into a nonprofit charity.

Clark, an ordained Cumberland Presbyterian minister who works at Fleet Feet Sports to pay his bills, is considering an offer to move the ministry from his home to Living Hope Church at the corner of Jackson and bike-laned McLean.

"We're not solving the hunger or homeless problem," Clark said. "We're just trying to show some Christian hospitality. We don't have a plan. We're just going to keep showing up every Wednesday."

They will even show up on Christmas Day, which this year falls on a Wednesday.

If you'd like to help or join the Urban Bicycle Food Ministry, visit ubfm.org.